BUREAUCRATIC RED TAPE – A LIVE EXAMPLE
A Purchaser, P, buys 2 items, @Rs 100 apiece, and asks for a bill of Rs 200
• The Seller Company, S.Co, wrongfully raises the bill for 4 items, at Rs 400
• P protests and demands correction so that he may pay
• S.Co agrees but takes 5 years to correct the bill, due to its bureaucracy
• Meanwhile for all this period S.Co applies interest, aggregating to Rs 150
• Finally, with correction, S.Co produces the bill for [200+150] = Rs 350
• P insists the bill should be Rs 200, and refuses to pay the interest
• The matter lingers on. Finally S.Co orally promises to close the account if P pays up the purchase cost
• P pays Rs 200 in full in good faith
• To his shock S.Co cheats, and applies the amount first towards interest (150) and the remainder towards the principal on LIFO. S.Co now claims [200-50] = Rs 150.
• P refuses, claiming he had settled the bill honestly and fully.
• S.Co pleads helplessness due to its ‘company policies’ and computer’s programme and continues to apply interest every year
• S.Co’s claim has now bloated to Rs. 450
• You decide.
• P protests and demands correction so that he may pay
• S.Co agrees but takes 5 years to correct the bill, due to its bureaucracy
• Meanwhile for all this period S.Co applies interest, aggregating to Rs 150
• Finally, with correction, S.Co produces the bill for [200+150] = Rs 350
• P insists the bill should be Rs 200, and refuses to pay the interest
• The matter lingers on. Finally S.Co orally promises to close the account if P pays up the purchase cost
• P pays Rs 200 in full in good faith
• To his shock S.Co cheats, and applies the amount first towards interest (150) and the remainder towards the principal on LIFO. S.Co now claims [200-50] = Rs 150.
• P refuses, claiming he had settled the bill honestly and fully.
• S.Co pleads helplessness due to its ‘company policies’ and computer’s programme and continues to apply interest every year
• S.Co’s claim has now bloated to Rs. 450
• You decide.
S.Co is none but the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation [AMC]. P is my once-active company. The Item is the municipal tax bill for the two floors of my office, each measuring 75 Sq Mtr, by AMC. The Tax was computed for 300 SqMtr, and later corrected to 150 SqMtr. But the claim of interest stands.
Tags: Bureaucrat
